Crossed Spirits
by PolarBearMagus
Summary: What happens when Katara, Toph, and Suki switch bodies? Utter chaos!
1. Witch of the Waste or Crazy Herbalist

Katara, Toph, and Suki went down to the stream. They filled up everyone's canteens, and Katara refilled her water pouch. Then Suki brought out three small tea cups. "Let's celebrate!" she said.

"Celebrate what?" asked Toph.

"Yeah, we haven't exactly been doing so great against the Fire Nation," Katara admitted.

"Well, no," said Suki as she dipped the cups into the stream. "But you did rescue me, and we're planning to infiltrate the Fire Nation." She made a face at their expressions. "We need to keep our hopes up, or we'll never succeed." She handed a cup each to Katara and Toph and raised her own. "May peace and harmony be restored to the world. To victory!"

"To victory!" the girls chorused. They clinked their cups together and drank the water down in one gulp.

Katara felt the chill of the water spread throughout her body. It sent goosebumps up her arm. Something wasn't right.

"Ah! I can't see!" exclaimed Toph.

"But I can!" shouted Katara.

Katara's eyes snapped open and she nearly screamed. She was staring at herself. She was watching herself spin around, a look of amazement on her face.

"What…?" she began, but was startled by her own voice. It was Suki's.

"What's going on?" cried Toph. She had her hands out in front of her, and she spun quickly, only to trip on a rock. "OW!"

"Wait," Katara ordered. She helped Toph to her feet, then regarded herself. "Who are you?"

"I'm Toph," Katara said. "Obviously."

"No, you're me. That's Toph," she pointed at the youngest girl. "So who are you?" she asked, patting her on the shoulder.

"Suki. Why can't I see?"

"You're in Toph's body. And I think I'm in yours. What's going on?"

"Oh dear," said a voice behind them. "It looks like you've got your spirits crossed."

They all spun around to see the crazy herbalist who had told Aang how to cure Sokka and Katara's sickness.

"Do you know how to uncross them?" asked Katara/Suki.

"I'll put the kettle on, shall I?" She pulled out some herbs from her bag and tossed them in the air.

The girls exchanged wary glances.

"Can you help us?" Suki/Toph asked slowly.

The woman hummed to herself.

"Let's go," said Toph/Katara. They started back to the camp.

"Wait!" the woman said. They looked back. "The best part about that spell," she said, "is that you can't tell anyone about it."

"Why can't we tell anyone?" they asked.

"It's not allowed," she said with a shrug. "You would be better off pretending to be whose body you're stuck in until you can figure out how to reverse it."

"And how do we reverse it?" asked Katara/Suki.

The woman pulled some jerky from her pouch and bit off a piece. "Uncross your spirits," she said. And then she wandered off, disappearing as quickly as she had come.


	2. Confused? Me too!

"Took you long enough!" said Sokka on their return to camp. He snatched a canteen from Katara/Suki and nearly drained it.

"I'm not going back to refill that," Katara/Suki told him.

Toph/Katara's jaw dropped. "That's what you look like?" she asked Sokka.

"Uh…" he said, not following.

"Hey, back off," said Suki/Toph, pushing her hand toward empty space.

"Hey, I think we should stay here for the night, Appa's exhausted and - um…are you guys all right?" asked Aang.

"Ooh, you're cute too," said Toph/Katara, sidling up to him. Aang's eyes widened in shock. "And I like this," she said, running a finger over the arrow tattoo on his head. He blushed furiously.

"Um…" he mumbled. "Katara?"

"Knock it off!" Katara/Suki told Toph/Katara. "He doesn't want you hanging all over him!"

Before Aang could contradict her, Suki/Toph rammed into the pair of them. "Sorry," she cried. "I'm still getting the hang of this."

An awkward silence descended on the group.

"We're just…really tired," Katara/Suki explained. "We'll be better after a good night's sleep."

After some shuffling around, the girls decided to sleep in a circle so they could talk.

"I'm so sick of not being able to see where I'm going!" Suki/Toph complained. Then she realized what she'd said. "Sorry," she apologized.

"I miss my earthbending," whispered Toph/Katara. "It's nice to finally see what people look like, but I feel so…"

"Blind?"

"Yeah. I can't 'see' everything like I used to."

Katara/Suki thought. "Do you think we can still bend like normal?"

Toph/Katara shook her head, but Suki/Toph frowned. "I wouldn't even know where to begin."

"We'll experiment tomorrow," Katara/Suki told them. "If we're still stuck like this, that is." And several hours later, they were all asleep.


	3. Incest is Best jk

When Katara woke up the next morning, she was still in Suki's body. She sighed. Then she groaned. Suki wore Kyoshi make-up. There was ino/i way she was going to try to put that goop on.

"Good morning," said Sokka as she wandered to the campfire. He started stretching, and he looked so ridiculous she giggled. "Feeling better?"

"Yes," she lied.

"So you're ready?" he asked.

"For what?!" she choked.

"Morning warm-up," he said. "Remember? Training?"

Before she could say anything, he pulled her over to a slightly flat clearing. Then he got into a fighting stance.

She awkwardly pulled out Suki's fans, and fumbled trying to open them up.

"Someone's not awake this morning," Sokka observed, and attacked, pulling out a pair of Suki's extra fans as he went.

Katara/Suki instinctively blocked, and blocked again, but she was slow each time. She backed up hurriedly, wishing all the while that she had her water pouch.

Sokka feinted to the side, and she blocked, but the fan slipped out of her hand. He came in for a "killing" blow but stopped an inch from her head.

"Are you sure you're okay?" he asked, lowering his hand.

She nodded, trying to convince herself of this fact, but she knew she was out of her depth, and that was not a good feeling to wake up to. "I can't stand this!" she exclaimed, driving Sokka back a step. "If someone attacked me right now, I wouldn't be able to defend myself! And you're –" she moved her mouth, but nothing came out, "you're –" she waved her arms, but it didn't help.

Sokka smiled. "You know, you're cute when you're mad," and he leaned in quickly to kiss her.

Katara/Suki yelped and dodged out of the way. "Don't do that!" she cried.

"Why not?" asked Sokka, mockingly hurt. He tried to kiss her again.

She slapped him.

"How dare you!" she said, trembling from head to foot. "You can't just go around kissing everybody. First Yue, now…me?"

Sokka froze. "You know about Yue?"

Katara/Suki saw her advantage and she pressed on. "Yeah," she said, jabbing a finger in his chest. "And who knows how many other girls you've kissed. I'm not going to stand for it any more!"

"No, I can explain!" he said, raising his hands in defense.

"Don't bother!" she said, turning on her heel and leaving. Hopefully that would keep him away from her until she had time to switch back.


	4. Wait Is this Zutara or Zuph?

Toph/Katara wandered down to the stream. "All right," she said, "let's bend some water." Taking up her stance, she shouted "rocklike!" and punched toward the water. A large wave slammed into the opposite shore. It was more of a splash than anything.

She laughed and slid her foot forward, but it didn't cause so much as a ripple. She frowned. Maybe Katara could show her the differences between earthbending and waterbending. In the meantime, Toph/Katara tried to adapt her own moves.

An unsuccessful hour later, she came back up to the camp. Sokka was off by himself. He looked different than she imagined. Good, but different. She took a step toward him, but Aang popped up in front of her.

"Hey Katara!" he said.

"Hey Twinkletoes."

He looked confused. "You never call me Twinkletoes."

"I – picked it up from Toph. I think it's…cute?"

"…Like you think iI'm/i cute?" he asked, blushing and rubbing the back of his head.

"Uh…yeah, I – "

"So I've been wanting to tell you this for a long time," said Aang, blushing even more. "I –"

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE YOU TRAITOR IF IT WAS UP TO ME I'D KILL YOU!!!!" screamed Katara/Suki.

Aang spun around and took up a fighting stance. "Zuko," he said in a low voice.

Zuko was standing at the edge of camp, looking slightly embarrassed and out of place.

"Zuko?" cried Suki/Toph. "Where?" She turned her back on him and spread out her hands.

But Sokka forgot that he was going to tell Suki to chill because she didn't really know Zuko, and he forgot that he was going to ask Toph why she suddenly forgot how to "see with earthbending" because Katara suddenly gasped.

"iYou're/i Zuko?" she asked, stepping up close to him. "But you're so cute!!! Much cuter than Aang, that's for sure."

"AAAAHHHHH!!!" cried Aang. "NNNNOOOOO!!!" He leapt in between Toph/Katara and Zuko, who looked like he wanted to run away.

"Leave us alone," Aang told him, spreading his arms out to block Toph/Katara from Zuko, but she kept trying to peer around them.

As Zuko explained how he'd made a mistake and that he wanted to rescue his Uncle Iroh, Katara/Suki stalked over and pulled on Toph/Katara's ear. "Stop it!" she hissed. "I would never stoop so low as to…I would never…"

"Why not?" Toph/Katara hissed back. "He doesn't seem so bad!" She twisted out of Katara/Suki's grip and dodged around Aang's outstretched arms to stand in front of Zuko again. "So are you staying with us or aren't you?"


	5. One Fatal Mistake

Suki/Toph thought she had managed to get the hang of this "seeing with earthbending" thing. She could "see" Sokka sitting on a log a little out of camp. She smiled and sat down next to him.

"This might sound a little strange, but I…I need to talk to you."

She felt him turn his head and take a breath, but she held up a hand to stop him. "Don't speak," she told him. She edged a little closer. "I'm really glad that you've been there for me whenever I needed you. I just want you to know that I appreciate it, and that I'll always be there for you, too." And she kissed him.

He jumped up and started to back away. "Wha – what are you doing?!"

Suki/Toph's eyes widened. "AANG???"

"I don't…you're not…we…just friends right?" He laughed nervously.

She buried her face in her hands, and she could definitely feel the heat radiating from her cheeks. "Yeah, sorry," she mumbled, and Aang ran away.

---

Katara/Suki leaned against a cool rock. If their spirits were crossed, how could they hope to uncross them? Maybe Aang would know…If only she could tell him their spirits were crossed, but –

She heard shouting back at camp. She ran back, thinking they were under attack, but it was just Toph/Katara and Suki/Toph.

"WHAT DID YOU DO THAT FOR?!?!" Toph/Katara shrieked.

"IT WAS A MISTAKE," Suki/Toph yelled back. "I THOUGHT HE WAS SOKKA!!!"

"WHAT?!?!?!" Toph/Katara launched herself at Suki/Toph and suddenly they were rolling around on the ground pulling at each other's hair and punching.

"Stop it!" Katara/Suki shouted. She waved a hand, then stomped her foot in frustration as she remembered she couldn't bend. "What's going on?"

"SHE KISSED AANG!!" Toph/Katara screamed, kicking Suki/Toph.

"WHAT?!?!?!" Katara/Suki jumped into the fray too.

When the boys got back from the spring, the girls were all sporting a fair share of bruises and sitting on opposite sides of the camp, refusing to speak to each other.


	6. Divided We Fall in Love

Aang woke up the next morning to loud angry voices. Katara, Toph, and Suki were sniping at each other as they made breakfast.

"Are they always like this?" Zuko asked. Aang turned around. The Firebender was leaning against a tree with his arms crossed.

"No, never." Suddenly Katara stomped over towards them. "Uh…hi Katara?"

She looked over her shoulder at Suki. "Watch me!" she said in a dangerous tone. Then she kissed Zuko, who was surprised. Aang was trying very hard to stay calm, but Suki exploded.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" she screamed, running over and pulling Katara off Zuko, who was now disappointed. Aang glared at him, but inside his heart was breaking.

"This!" said Katara, and kissed Aang.

Now all of his dreams were coming true!

Then Suki had to go and ruin it by pulling Katara off him as well. "Hmm, who should I pick?" asked Katara mockingly.

"If anyone's kissing Aang, it's me!" cried Suki, and she did just that, but Aang backed away hurriedly.

"What's going on?" asked Sokka, with Toph following.

"Your turn!" cried Katara, and she kissed Sokka. Zuko's and Aang's mouths dropped open in utter shock. Sokka pushed her away.

"Okay, that was creepy," he said, but Suki let out a war-cry and tackled Katara.

"That was just wrong," said Zuko, shaking his head. Aang was crestfallen. So Katara didn't love him after all.

"What just happened?" asked Toph. (Suki was pulling Katara's hair.)

"Katara just kissed all of us," said Aang sadly.

"No!" cried Toph, grabbing onto Sokka's arm. "Even you, Sokka?"

"Get off me!" said Zuko, shaking her off.

"I thought you could, you know," Sokka waved his arms mysteriously, "isee with earthbending/i."

"I can, I mean, I do, I mean…"

"Wait," said Aang as all the pieces fell into place. "You can't see, Suki can't fight, and Katara – "

"Kissed her brother," said Zuko.

"Yeah, that. Something must have happened, something that's messing with your minds."

"Yeah," Sokka agreed sarcastically, "maybe they all just iswitched/i bodies!"

"STOP GIVING ME A BAD NAME!" Suki shouted in Katara's face.

"GET OFF ME SUGAR QUEEN!"

As one, everyone turned to stare. "Toph is Katara?!" Sokka realized.

"Katara is Suki?" Aang realized with a smile.

"So you're Suki?" Zuko asked Toph, who nodded.

The boys pulled Katara/Suki and Toph/Katara apart. "Why didn't you tell us this before?"

"We couldn't, it was part of the spell." They explained what the crazy herbalist had said about their crossed spirits.

"Then I'll go uncross them!" said Aang, sitting down to meditate.

When he opened his eyes, he was in the spirit world, or at least he thought so, but his friends were standing right in front of him. They were frozen, as if time had stopped. Then he looked closer at the girls, and he realized what crossed spirits meant.

Katara's spirit was like a blue ghost in Suki's body, Suki's a green ghost in Toph's, and Toph's a silver ghost in Katara's. Very carefully, he guided the spirits to the correct bodies. He looked up at Katara's face. iWell, since I'm here,/i he thought with a wicked grin, and kissed her.

Katara opened her eyes. She smiled. Something good had just happened. She bended some water out of the cooking pot and whirled it around. "Yay! I can bend water again!" she said with a laugh, then froze when she saw herself, staring in shock back at her. "What?!" She looked down, patting herself, only to see yellow and orange. She let out a yelp.

"Aang! WHAT DID YOU DO?!"


	7. Crisscrossed

Aang/Katara blushed furiously. "I didn't do anything!"

"He says as one of his chakras closes up," said Sokka.

"What do iyou/i know about chakras?" asked Aang/Katara. "I didn't tell you anything about them!"

"Uh…plot device?"

"This is just weird," Zuko observed. "Is it always like this with you peasants?"

"Hey, Zuko," said Toph, sidling up and latching onto his arm.

"No offence," he said, "but I liked it better when you were Katara."

Several seconds later, Toph brushed the dirt off her hands. "No offence," she said, "but I liked it better when you were above ground."

Meanwhile, Aang/Katara and Katara/Aang had worked out a plan. They both sat down and tried to enter the Spirit World, but a few hours later, neither of them had made any progress.

"Hey Katara," Sokka said, running up.

"Over here, Sokka," said Katara/Aang with a sigh.

"Oh, right," he said, staring down at Aang/Katara. "I keep forgetting. Anyway, I was thinking. Since the Avatar's the one who enters the Spirit World, and since he's got those glowy tattoos, maybe he needs to be in ithat/i body for it to work."

There was a stunned silence. "How do you come up with this stuff?" asked Aang/Katara.

"Oh, it's easy when you're, you know, me." And he walked off with a bit of a swagger.

"So, what do we do now?" asked Katara/Aang.

"Well, maybe since a kiss got us into this mess – "

"I knew it!" she declared, stabbing a finger in his face.

"-maybe we have to kiss again to get out of it?"

Katara/Aang raised an eyebrow.

"Oh come on, it's as good a theory as your kissing in the cave one."

Katara/Aang blushed. "All right, fine, but it'll be weird kissing myself…"

They moved closer together, but their trying to avoid awkwardness only seemed to increase it. Carefully, they leaned in, and –

"Hey, Katara!" shouted a familiar voice. They both jumped apart.

"Jet?!" cried Katara/Aang. "But you're…you're…"

"Nice to see you too," he said to Aang/Katara. He stepped up close, very clearly invading Aang/Katara's personal space. "I…missed those hair loopies," he said, and tried to kiss Aang/Katara, but Aang/Katara quickly dodged.

"Hey, leave him alone!" Katara/Aang cried, trying to jump in between them, but Jet froze. He took a good long look at Aang/Katara, who was blushing again.

"'Him'?!!"

"Uh, slip of the tongue, I meant – "

"Oh no," said Jet, backing away hurriedly. "That's just wrong." And he disappeared as quickly as he had come.


End file.
